Just Because
by Madam Jekyll
Summary: A little something about Naruto and Sasuke growing up, getting hormonal, a little sentimental, and experiencing all their firsts as well as everything in between. Because they're Ying and Yang and meant to be together, so why not? Rated M just in case. Reviews are very muchly appreciated.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Don't own any of the Naruto characters nor do I claim to. However, this is _my _story, of which I do take full credit - even if that's not saying much.

* * *

**Baby Steps**_  
_

_This stupid._

Grumbling to himself, Sasuke sat facing the corner of what he had very quickly discovered was a completely bland wall. No interesting wallpaper to study, no incriminating doodles. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. And he hadn't even done anything to deserve this boring punishment. So what if he had told the little girl her pink hair was stupid? It _was_ stupid! Who in their right mind _wanted_ pink hair? Stupid people, obviously. And how was he supposed to know that 'stupid' was a bad word? 'Tachi-niisan had said it all the time and Sasuke was pretty damn sure he had never ended up getting a stern lecture, let alone been placed in the naughty corner.

After another infuriating five minutes, Sasuke let out a frustrated sigh and swiped a rather pudgy hand across his face in a half-hearted attempt to remove his bangs from his eyes. Failed. Miserably. Growling at his un-Uchiha like grace, Sasuke harshly tried again and again to remove the midnight-black bangs, each failure fuelling the growing irritation inside him. Finally, somewhere around the sixth or seventh try, and having poked himself in the eye rather hard, Sasuke conceded defeat.

Not, however, without pouting like a three year old child. Then again, he was only four and whilst that did mean he was a big boy now, he supposed he could still get away with acting like a baby every now and then. Rubbing his now watering left eye, Sasuke tried hard not to scream his unhappiness to the world, because he knew that Uchihas, regardless of how young they were, did not throw temper tantrums. They merely glared at things, and after a while, if it didn't start crying or just die on the spot, they'd simply ignore it and carry on with their stoic lives.

_Stupid hair. Stupid girl. Stupid time out. Stupi - _

Just as Sasuke had decided that he rather liked the word 'stupid', he felt a series of small taps to his shoulder. Whipping around in surprise, Sasuke found himself face to face with what he thought must be the sky contained in two large marbles. It was only when the mouth below them burst into a blinding grin that Sasuke realised he was staring at a face. A face framed by messy blonde hair, sun-kissed skin and what appeared to be whiskers. Sasuke squinted. Yep, definitely whiskers. And had he been in a good mood, Sasuke may have smiled a little, because he liked animals, especially foxes - and the boy standing in front of him certainly looked like one. But he wasn't.

So Sasuke crossed his arms in front of his chest, gave his best shot at the Uchiha glare and snarled. "What do you want, dobe?"

He wasn't quite sure what 'dobe' meant, but 'Tachi-niisan said it was mean and it seemed to fit the blonde boy nicely. When his smile faltered, Sasuke grinned. The standing boy seemed to think, unsure of how to react to Sasuke's rather unfriendly question, before deciding to drop it completely. His radiant grin came back in full force, splitting his face and revealing his missing tooth.

"Hi! I is Nawuto and I is four years old." He stated proudly, before abruptly thrusting his hand into the other boy's face. "We be friends?"

Sasuke was shocked and blinked rapidly at the outstretched hand. When he didn't take it, the fingers wiggled around, as if to say, 'Come on, shake', aggravating him even further. Furiously, Sasuke shook his head - did the blonde not know how to react to an insult? He gave the boy a look.

"Are you stupid or something?"

Naruto started, sending bits of blonde hair flying. "No, Nawuto not stupee. Sometimes Nawuto falls down, but Nawuto _not_ stupee." He paused for breath. "Friends?" He asked again, pushing his hand even closer to Sasuke's face.

Sasuke snorted and his mouth parted to let out one blunt word.

"No."

And with that, he turned back around to face the wall, satisfied and sure that this whiskered little boy would leave him alone. Because, regardless of how bored he was, Sasuke wasn't the type to make friends. He had his niisan, his toy snake Orochimaru, his mother and his father - and that was all he really needed. Hell, if he was really desperate, he had his older brother's annoying friend, Kakashi, as well.

Naruto frowned and promptly dropped into a crouch behind the sitting boy. For a few seconds he simply stared at Sasuke's hair, captivated by its almost blue colour, before he redirected his attention back to his original mission. _Friends_. Reaching up with his right hand, he poked the small shoulder in front of him. When it elicited no particular response, he did it again. And again. And again. Finally, fed up with the boy's apparent lack of emotion, Naruto pulled his arm back and clenched his tiny hand into a fist. Then, he rammed it forward and punched him.

Sasuke jerked forward with the force and toppled over, his teeth biting into the colourful carpet beneath him, arms splayed wide either side. For a moment, he froze, unable to think with a mouthful of lint and god knows what else, before the realisation hit him. Someone, namely fox-boy, had punched him. The shock of it all was tremendous and Sasuke swore he could feel it creeping over his shoulders. That boy had _punched_ him. And even more horrifying was the thought that Whisker-face had punched _him._ Had punched Sasuke Uchiha. _  
_

_"Uchihas _never_ show their anger," _He could hear his father quoting.

_But..._

With a terrifying war cry, Sasuke turned around and pounced on the boy behind him. Naruto, clearly not expecting a reaction at all, had the wind completely knocked out of him as they fell together, tumbling into the middle of the room. Completely oblivious to the other wide-eyed toddlers, Sasuke sat atop Naruto's middle and glared down at the somewhat dazed boy.

"You're so annoying! I don't wanna be your stupid friend!" He spat loudly, knowing that he couldn't physically hurt the boy. Because if he did, that'd mean trouble, and trouble meant spending another 15 minutes staring a wall - something he'd rather not do again. Naruto snapped out of his stupor, gaped, and then growled.

"Nawuto _told_ you, Nawuto isn't stupee! _You_ stupee because you not want to be Nawuto's friend!" He shouted back, hands flying into the air in a frenzied attempt to grab something.

Sasuke caught Naruto's searching hands, held them away from his face and leaned down, making sure he was right by the blonde's ear. "DOBE!" He yelled.

"TEME!" Naruto retaliated, having remember what his father usually said to the people who irritated him.

Not quite understanding the insult, but feeling insulted nonetheless, Sasuke let one of Naruto's hands go in favour of using his own free hand to punch the squirming boy. Sasuke had expected the shot to be marginally off because, well, the boy was wiggling around a fair bit. But what he didn't expect, was the wiggling to stop altogether.

Because Naruto had felt the blow hit the left side of his chest and stopped dead. Looking down at the first just underneath his head, it took a few moments of complete silence for Naruto to register that Sasuke, his potential _friend_, had just hit him. Wide, baby blue eyes turned back up to meet Sasuke's own, confusion and a little bit of hurt flashing through them, before he shoved the sitting boy off him. Using all the brain power a four-year old could muster, Naruto tried to join the dots - Sasuke's fist, the throbbing on the outside of his chest, and the little ache that had started to spread from somewhere inside his chest throughout his body.

"You broke Nawuto's heart!" He screamed, sitting up and clutching at his shirt.

Sasuke reeled backwards, utter disbelief written on his face. "I_ whaaat_?"

"Nawuto is going to die!" Naruto continued screaming. "Nawuto's heart won't work no more because you stupee teme broke it!" He pointed a finger viciously in Sasuke's direction.

Sasuke was not used to being accused of anything and hollered back, "Did not!" He knew this sort of argument was childish, but you couldn't break a heart by punching someone. Right?

"You did too!" Naruto was almost crying now. When he'd seen the other boy sitting by himself earlier on that morning, Naruto had decided that he looked lonely and instantly made up his mind - he'd simply become the pale boy's friend and _unlonely_ him. That was all he had wanted and now... he was pretty sure his heart was broken and that his chest would start to turn that nasty purple colour because it always did that when something inside of him hurt. And it was all that teme's fault! If Naruto died, that'd mean no more mummy, no more daddy, no more Ruru-chan, no more _ramen_... _  
_

With his own furious battle cry, Naruto lunged at Sasuke and sent them rolling, determined to break Sasuke's heart too - because that was only fair, wasn't it? Lifting his arms up, he let down as much of a barrage of punches as he could. But, unbeknownst to him, Sasuke had always been a quick learner and soon recovered from his initial shock. He kicked and bucked underneath Naruto, trying to sit up but_ damn it,_ this boy was like a rock! He emitted a loud growl of frustration before he finally managed to flip their positions around, only to have his back hit the floor again within the next minute. But Sasuke never gave up easily, and the two continued to roll and scrabble around the floor.

Suddenly, a strong hand grabbed Sasuke by collar and hoisted him into the air. Similarly, Naruto was also yanked up from his position on the ground and both boys shared a fearful look at the teacher's thunderous face.

"And just _what_ is going on here?"

* * *

Sasuke rubbed his cheek, eyes downcast. It was sore and it stung, but he knew he hadn't broken the skin because he wasn't bleeding. Naruto, on the other hand... He glanced at the other boy sitting on the chair opposite - his lip was bleeding. Whether it was from one of his punches or from his current lip biting, Sasuke wasn't sure.

_Stupid dobe._ Sasuke grumbled to himself.

At the sound, Naruto eyes snapped up to meet his own, and Sasuke was mildly surprised to find that they were watering.

_He's... crying?_

Cautiously, he slipped down from his chair and across the room, watching as Naruto dropped his head down to avoid his questioning gaze. When he came to a stop in front of the whiskered boy, he paused, suddenly unsure of what he was doing. But, at this age at least, curiousity won and Sasuke dropped to his knees and turned his face up to see.

Naruto was crying in honesty now, his sky-blue eyes filling and shedding big silver tears. He sniffled a bit, and brought his hands up to cover his face, realising a little too late that Sasuke had already seen. And frankly, Sasuke was more than shocked. He knew that perhaps he had a been a little rude, a little bit of a bully, but he really hadn't expected the boy to react this way - and it made him uncomfortable, for some reason. Maybe it was because he hadn't dealt with this before, considering he was the youngest child in his family.

"Don't... Don't be a crybaby." He tried.

It was an attempt at comfort, an empty insult said in the hopes that maybe the blonde would fire up again. But when Naruto began to bawl more loudly and hunch further in on himself, Sasuke panicked, feeling tears begin to well in his own coal-black eyes. Gently, very gently, he grasped the other's wrists and pull them away from his face. Now that he could see it properly, Naruto's lip looked red, swollen and painful. And Sasuke regretted putting it there. Uncertain again, Sasuke stared as Naruto continued to cry.

Suddenly, though, he could hear something.

_"If you make a mistake, outoto, you have to fix it." _

_But Tachi-niisan,_ he should have asked, _what if__ I hurt someone? How do I fix that?_

Then Sasuke remembered falling off his bike, throwing his hands out to save himself and feeling the sting of skin against gravel spread through his palms. He had screamed, and his mother can come running out to him. When she realised it was just a few scratches, she had smiled, bundled him up, taken him back inside and bandaged his wounds. But it still hurt, and he had said just that, so she had leaned over, raised his hands, and kissed his boo-boos better.

Sasuke gave Naruto an uncertain look - he didn't have any bandages, and he obviously couldn't carry Naruto home to either of their mothers to get some. So, he did the next best thing.

Slowly, Sasuke let go of Naruto's hands and reached up, cupping Naruto's face. Naruto jerked a little, his crying slowed by his surprise, before he tried squirming to get away. But Sasuke didn't give him that chance, sternly looking Naruto in the eyes as if to say, 'Don't move.'

And then he leaned in and, as gently as he could, carded his lips over Naruto's.

Realising that he had just kissed another boy that wasn't related to him, Sasuke abruptly pulled back and flushed whilst Naruto stared at him with wide eyes. He had stopped crying entirely and could register nothing but that tingly feeling on his otherwise numb lips.

"Feel... better?"

Naruto nodded dumbly. Sasuke had just kissed him, which mummy and daddy did when they wanted to say 'I love you' but were giggling too much to actually do it. Did that mean Sasuke loved him too? But he was so mean before! He didn't want to be Naruto's friend! The blonde shook his head, utterly confused as to what had happened and oblivious to the mixed signals he was sending.

Sasuke clenched his fists. He thought he had been forgiven when Naruto had nodded 'yes'. But then Naruto had furrowed his brows and given him an anxious, even slightly suspicious, look and left Sasuke completely bewildered. What more could he do? Well... Sasuke knew what else he could do, but he'd never done it before and he still didn't really want to. On the other hand, he realised, if he didn't, Naruto might start crying again and he wasn't confident he could handle that a second time.

So Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut and tried very very hard to say the right thing.

"I'm sor... ry."

As soon as the words had left his mouth and ventured into Naruto's ears, the confusion Naruto previously held disappeared. 'Sorry' was a good word, Ruru-chan had told him so, and it meant that everything was okay now.

Sasuke peeked an eye open and, at the sight of Naruto's beaming face, felt the tightness in his chest that he wasn't aware of beforehand ease. He sighed in relief, put his hands in his pockets and made his way back to his own chair, across the room. Halfway there, he was stopped by a tug on his sleeve. He glanced back and realised that Naruto had followed him, obviously wanting something. He pivoted on the spot and raised his eyebrows.

Naruto merely grinned, no longer perturbed by the boy, and thrust his hand into the pocket of Sasuke's pants. He fished around for a bit, while the slightly taller boy looked at him in pure shock, until he managed to grab hold of one of his hands and bring them both back out into the open. He looked down at the conjoined hands and marvelled at how much contrast there was between their skin tones.

"Friends."

This time, it wasn't a question. It was a statement and Sasuke looked at his hand wearily. This boy was just so _persistent_.

A defeated sigh escaped him.

"Friends."

* * *

******First meeting between Naruto and Sasuke, location: Kinder (In case you guys didn't get any of that). **

**So, let me know what you guys think? First story, first time, and I don't have a beta because I reckon I look out for myself pretty well, but if you guys can't understand a thing I've written - I may consider taking one up. **

**There will definitely be more to come because, after reading so many good (and so many shitty) SasuNaru stories, I've got so many ideas that, hopefully, I'll be able to put down into words. So keep checking up here, okay?**

**Peace out,**

**Madam Jekyll. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Masashi Kishimoto owns all of the Naruto characters, I'm just manipulating them.

**Warning: **Characters may be a little OOC, but this is sort of how I'd like them to act - just saying.

* * *

**Happiness Is Made From Tomatoes**

Naruto clutched his orange lunch box to his chest and darted around the corner, pausing for the space of a breath. He made sure that neither Kiba, Shika or Bushy Brows were following him, then dashed behind the boys' toilets.

And there he was, cross-legged on the ground, waiting for him. And maybe it was because this happened everyday, or maybe it was the irritated scowl the other boy always had on his face, or maybe he didn't even _know_ what, but Naruto couldn't control the smile that broke free. He skipped over to where Sasuke was sitting and plopped himself down, letting out an enthusiastic 'Hiiiii'.

"You're late." Sasuke grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're always late. Stupid baka."

Naruto felt his body freeze at the insult, but soon decided that he sort of deserved it. Everything had been going according to plan - Naruto creating enough of a ruckus that the girls' were completely distracted, allowing Sasuke time to slip away to their spot. But what the pair hadn't counted on, was Naruto being distracted himself. In fact, he had completely forgotten about the whole thing until he had opened his lunch box and seen what was inside. By then, outside play time was already half over.

"He," Naruto ducked his head down. "Uh, sor- sooorry?"

Sasuke watched as a tanned hand came up to bury itself in the back of messy yellow hair, and decided he'd let the other boy wallow in his guilt for a few more minutes. I mean, he had actually been having a relatively good day - the girls hadn't thrown themselves at him too frequently and he hadn't had any fights with any of the other children or their teacher. And then Naruto just _had_ to go and screw it up.

Obsidian eyes flickered to Naruto's other hand, watching as chubby fingers repeatedly pulled and stretched the end of his orange shirt. He sighed. Just this once, he'd let it go. And only because he was _such_ a generous person.

"Okay okay, I forgive you."

At his words, Naruto let out an obvious breath of relief, melodramatically wiping away the sweat on his forehead.

Sasuke ignored the action and tried hard not to smile. He was still angry, damn it. "Do you have the stuff?"

All traces of Naruto's playful mood vanished, and his head jerked up to give a stiff nod. "And I made sure that nobody followed me, just like a ninja." He added, chest swelling with accomplishment.

This time, Sasuke allowed a smirk to cross his features - they both had a thing for ninjas. "Good."

Turning around for a quick second, Sasuke's little hands scrambled for his own black lunch box, fingers giving away the excitement his face wouldn't show. He snapped the lid open and took out the five wrapped sweets he had stolen, without his parents' knowledge, from the cupboard earlier that morning. He _hated_ sugary things and blanched just looking at them. They were sticky and hard and just plain awful. Not to mention the risk involved with taking them. Nonetheless, the rewards he received for his crime?

_Worth it._

"Here." Sasuke held out his hand, impatiently watching as the blonde counted them to make sure there were exactly five and no less. Apparently satisfied, Naruto smiled his pearly white thanks and proceeded to study each flavour carefully - bouncing around a little as he spotted the ones he liked.

But Uchihas, namely Sasuke, were not known for their patience.

"Well?" He snarled, snapping his hand closed, coal eyes ablaze with obvious irritation.

Naruto's eyes shot up to meet them and for a minute, he glared at the dark-haired boy - annoyed that his enjoyment had been interrupted. Grumbling to himself, tanned fingers flicked the lid of his own lunch box open and took out the one thing Sasuke had been waiting for.

A tomato. Grown fresh from the Uzumaki backyard and pitched before his father could notice, it was a glorious red in colour, much like his mother's hair. And in Naruto's eyes, utterly disgusting. He was almost tempted to piff the stupid thing at Sasuke.

But when azure eyes flickered up and saw the absolute adoration adorning the pale boy's face, Naruto decided that maybe that could wait until next time.

"Trade?" He asked, almost shyly holding the fruit, vegetable, _thing_ out.

"Duh." Came the response. Not the most eloquent from an Uchiha but honestly, Sasuke chided, what else were they going to do?

Then, in a matter of seconds, the process of swapping, internally celebrating and then devouring their individual treats was over - and both boys radiated a content, somewhat smug aura. Naruto, always the dramatic one, rubbed his little belly and sighed, watching as Sasuke quietly smacked his lips together, his pink tongue darting out to clean up any remnants left around his mouth.

_Yeah, definitely worth it._

And although the raven knew he never really had to ask, he did. "Same thing tomorrow?"

"_Duh_."

He glared. "Don't copy me."

Naruto was beaming again. "Don't copy me."

"Poo-face."

"Poo-face."

"Baka."

"Baka."

"Naruto's a dobe."

"Naruto's a do- Hey! Sasuke, that's mean!"

Sasuke smile and stood up, grinning even further when an idea came to mind. He quickly dusted his shorts off and leaned in close to Naruto, making sure he had the blonde's full attention by catching disgruntled blue eyes.

"You're a doooobe!" He sang, before pivoting on the spot and running away as fast as his little legs could carry him. He didn't need to turn around to see the shocked expression Naruto would have plastered all over his whiskered face. He could picture that with absolute clarity, no worries. The pounding of another pair of feet alerted him to the fact that Naruto had, predictably, given chase and he urged his feet to speed up. Faster and faster, oblivious to the angry shouts of their sensei, they charged back inside - the passing gentle breeze carrying away an angry 'Teme!' and the breathless laughter that followed.

* * *

Naruto was bored. Tear-out-his-hair-brain-is-melting-out-his-ears bored.

And it was stupid. What was even _stupider_ was the reason for it.

He'd arrived late, as usual, and almost instantly discovered that a certain raven-haired teme wasn't there. Initially, he'd been proud that he'd made it to kinder before Sasuke for once, and, having dumped his bag down, he'd simply decided to play with the others until youngest Uchiha came.

The only problem was... he hadn't.

Naruto sighed, watching as Gaara's older brother and sister exited the kindergarten with the small red head in tow. He flipped his blonde hair out of his face and then reflected on his day. Originally, he'd wanted to play with the girls - but they had all been having a tea party inside the old cubby house, and for some odd reason, hadn't allowed him in. So he'd played with Kiba, who was a feisty youth marked by red triangles on his face and his mop of brown hair. But, as fun as it had been pranking their teacher and chasing after his pup, Naruto had soon discovered that the smell of wet dog was too much for his sensitive nose to handle. And Kiba reeked of it.

Hence, he'd slipped away and gone to off to find Shikamaru. It wasn't hard, considering the fact that he was lying in the middle of the lawn. He'd plopped himself down beside him and, almost instantly, realised that the aura the other boy admitted was different to Kiba's. Calm, relaxed and nonchalant, kind of like a lazy Sunday afternoon. It was nice, really, and Naruto had simply begun chattering away - about his mother, his father (the sole reason for why he was late all the time), how amazing his older brother 'Ruka-chan was, and how he didn't understand why Hinata stuttered like a broken record whenever he so much as looked at her. He wasn't _that _scary, was he?

But, just when Naruto was really getting into his little rant, he'd suddenly, unexpectedly, heard a snore. _A snore._ Azure eyes slowly crossed to the face beside him and god_ damn it_, he should have known that no one wore a peaceful expression like that when they weren't sleeping. Should have known that no one could listen to him jabber on and on and on, without getting annoyed. Not even Sasuke could do that.

_Sasuke._

And just like that, he'd missed the boy terribly - the force of it hitting him like a freight train. He could feel tears beginning to prick at the corner of his eyes and he knew that it was ridiculous to cry over something so small, so he'd shook his head and fiercely thrown an arm over his face.

_Stupid Sasuke._

Sniffling to himself, Naruto had completely missed the arrival of Chouji. That was, until a packet of chips was roughly thrust into his face. He sat up straight and gave the other boy a funny look. Chouji smiled.

"Eat them. Chips. Make you happy." The chubby boy had explained, before delving his hand back into his own open pack and sitting down beside him. They hadn't really spoken much, mouths too full and minds too occupied. But the company had been nice and the three, four when little Gaara joined, stayed together for the rest of the day.

Which had eventually lead him to his current predicament - empty chip packet in hand, bored out of his mind and completely alone. The others had already been picked up and, aside from his teacher, he was the last one left. Naruto sighed for the umpteenth time, changed sitting position and resumed waiting. It was a tiresome job, really, but his dad was never early to anything. Ever.

But, speak of the devil and he shall appear, Minato Uzumaki came strolling through the door. And it became obvious, with the same untamed blonde hair, startling blue eyes and sun-kissed skin, that the whisker-faced boy was essentially a smaller version of his father.

Naruto waited grumpily for his father to finish greeting his teacher and walk over to him. When he did, the young Uzumaki refused to grant him any eye contact. This prompted nought but a deep chuckle and after a few irritating minutes, Naruto gave in and threw his arms around the man - burying his face in the crook of his neck. There, safe and hidden from the world, the tears that Naruto had kept bottled inside began to spill over. His slight shoulders trembled violently and, regardless of how quiet he tried to be, the poor boy was soon sobbing in earnest.

Leaving one Minato Uzumaki very, very confused.

"Hey," He tried, rubbing small circles on his son's back. "Squirt, what's wrong, huh?"

Gently, he pried the hands that were clinging to his shirt away and pulled back enough to see Naruto's tear-streaked face.

"Sas- Sasu- Sasuke no come today an- and Naruto was a- all by himself!" He cried, before diving back into the safety of his father's chest, wails continuing to rise in volume. Minato glanced helplessly over to the somewhat entertained teacher, wordlessly asking for an explanation.

"Yes, the littlest Uchiha wasn't feeling well." She clarified. "His parents called earlier this morning to inform us that he wouldn't be coming. Unfortunately for your son, that meant no best friend for the day." She gave the boy a sympathetic smile, ignoring the obvious glares Naruto sent her way.

Minato nodded and laughed softly, but froze when his mind suddenly registered one particular word.

"I'm sorry but... Did you say 'Uchiha'?"

* * *

The Uchiha manor was a fucking mansion. Located in the middle of Konoha, Minato didn't know how he hadn't registered its existence earlier.

_Maybe we're not at the right place?_

A quick glance at the scribbled note. Nope, this was definitely it. Then again, what had he been expecting? A fucking cottage? He snorted in amusement. There was no way in hell Fu would have settled for anything less grand than this - the rose gardens, white marbles, perfectly trimmed trees. The place had an air of superiority, completely lacking in colour and, aside from the odd servant, devoid of human life. And it was all so very very regal, and so very Uchiha that Minato could almost feel that familiar glare burning holes into his being already.

So why, pray tell, did he feel so bloody _nervous_?

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Minato raised his finger for what felt like the hundredth time. And paused, again. He growled at himself - in the past, he had simply waltzed in, yelling for Fugaku to come downstairs and greet him as if it were his own home. What had happened between now and then? He'd grown up a little more, gotten married, had kids. And apparently, Fu had too. But, Minato reasoned, he himself, as a person, hadn't changed much. He was still the same wild blonde who could charm (and force, if he had too) his way into anyone's heart and pants. The thought gave him confidence, and the blonde man straightened up before sharply rapping on the door.

Naruto, previously awed into silence, snapped out of his stupor and followed suit - knocking the oak as hard and as many times as his little knuckles allowed him to. The two blondes stood together, shuffling awkwardly from foot to foot, patiently waiting for someone to answer. And when someone finally did, Minato was met by the same turned down mouth, same disapproving expression as he was all those years ago.

"Hey, Fu... Uh, long time no see."

For a second they were blank, and then coal-black eyes flashed with recognition. The door was promptly shut.

Naruto gaped. Daddy had always told him to be polite to those who visited their house, so the fact that they had been so rudely dismissed puzzled him. He glanced up and watched as the same shock painted its way across his father's face. Frowning slightly, he leaned forward, and knocked on the door again. If that strange man didn't want to see them, _he_ at least wanted to see Sasuke.

The door opened again, and Fugaku was ready to bite out something about all Uzumaki's being thick and idiotic because in case Minato hadn't gotten the hint before, he really didn't want to see him - but was caught off guard when something small and hazardous shot through the gap in his legs. And-

"SAAASUKE!"

Naruto's call rang through the house and Fugaku was sure if the sound barrier didn't shatter, the windows would. But thankfully, no such luck. He glared at the little tyke before slowly turning his eyes towards what had to be the thing's father.

"Explain yourself, Uzumaki."

* * *

Sasuke sprung up into a rigid sitting position. He could have sworn he'd heard Naruto call his name. But then his eyes adjusted to the dim light and he reasoned with himself. He was here, at home, isolated in his bedroom, sick. He probably wasn't even awake. Nodding at his logic, Sasuke pulled the blankets up and sank back down into the covers, eyes falling shut once again - promising himself that he'd tell the whiskered boy about this strange dream when he got better.

But, unbeknownst to him, Naruto didn't plan on waiting that long and was already tearing up the stairs in search of his bedroom. When he reached the top, he was met by the biggest, longest, emptiest hallway he had ever seen in his life. And for one split second, he was terrified. But then his courage kick-started again and he bravely approached the first of the two doors that could be seen, slamming it open with a karate yell that he knew Sasuke would appreciate.

The grin that split his face at the shocked expression his friend wore made his cheeks hurt. He'd never seen a look like that before, nor had he ever seen the young Uchiha with such long hair, or with those funny lines on his face, or so tall or... so... old.

That wasn't Sasuke.

That _wasn'__t_ Sasuke? It sure as hell _looked_ like Sasuke, but the intimidating aura that radiated from that stranger screamed otherwise. As the pieces fell together, a gasp echoed through the room and Naruto's arms came up in a defensive position, completely contradicting the way his body reeled backwards in fright and landed with a soft 'thud' on the wooden floorboards. The mysterious person smiled, or maybe it was just a twitch of lips, and then spoke.

"I think you'll find Sasuke's room is next door."

The voice was amused, to say the least - a little mocking, but not unkind. Naruto blinked. It was sort of mellowing, really, and it made him all the more embarrassed. Dirty blonde hair tumbled into his face and he nodded, casting his eyes to the floor as he carefully rose to his feet, hands going behind him to rub at his sore bottom. He gave the older boy a sheepish smile, before turning and running back where he came. Fingers enclosed the golden doorknob, ready to yank it open again, when Naruto remembered his manners.

_"Awww, 'Ruka-chan! Do I have to?" He whined._

_"Yes, just say thank you, then a nice thing and then say goodbye - and I promise I'll make you some ramen when you get home, okay?" Iruka beamed._

Whipping around, he gave a short, sharp bow - high conscious of the coal black eyes following his movements. This dude was totally scary but he never disobeyed his older brother. Plus... Iruka had promised him ramen, right?

He took a giant gulp of air. "Fanks for having me and I think you're really pretty and your house is waaay big and goodbye now!"

The words were hurriedly spat and Itachi watched as the little kid charge out of his room the second he was finished, door slamming shut in his wake. And whilst he wasn't 100% sure, he was fairly certain that had been Naruto, the boy he'd heard so much about when Sasuke came home every day from kinder.

_What a strange child._

But as he turned back to his work, 11 year old Itachi found that, strange child or not, with those sincere blue eyes and precious little whisker marks he didn't really mind Naruto calling him 'pretty' at all.

* * *

Having finally made it to Sasuke's room, Naruto stared at his best friend with something akin to wonder and discovered that the youngest Uchiha, despite his cold and violent attitude, could be rather pretty too. Black hair settled across his forehead, a peaceful expression on his face instead of the constant frown. It was serene, really and for a brief moment, he was content to just watch the small rise and fall of Sasuke's chest.

Gingerly, Naruto pulled out the tomato that he had hidden in his pocket after his father picked him up. It was a little squashed, a little bruised and he wondered if Sasuke would even look at it, let alone eat it. He gnawed at his lip in worry - he hadn't come all this way for nothing, but if Sasuke didn't want it... He grimaced. The rejection would hurt. A lot.

But then his four year old brain kicked in and he concluded that if that was the case, he could simply run away and never come back, right? He nodded firmly to himself, before placing the tomato on the bed and clambering up beside it. He contemplated shouting at Sasuke to wake him up, but quickly realised that probably wouldn't end to well - Sasuke was always grumpy after nap time and somehow, Naruto didn't think it would be any different at home. So he stretched out a hand and gave his friend a slight shake.

"Saaasuke, wake up." He whispered, leaning in.

No reaction. Try again.

"Sas'ke-teme!"

And maybe it was the nickname, or maybe it was the harder shake that did it, but Sasuke shot up and promptly conked heads with a very surprised Naruto.

"Itai, itai, itai..." He mumbled, before glaring at the cursed thing that had roused him.

Both of Naruto's tanned hands had gone to make sure his head was still intact and his face was scrunched up in agony. He could feel the lump that was starting to grow and he pressed harder, trying to force it back into his skull. Lord, he had not been expecting that.

Cracking an eye open, he glanced at Sasuke and flinched at the red mark in the middle of his forehead. Did he do that? It looked like it hurt too, so he awkwardly reached out to pat it better.

Sasuke cringed when dirty little fingers began caressing his forehead but soon enough, the warmth that emanated from them overrode his dislike. Naruto grinned a little as he watched the tension that previously sat in Sasuke's body disappear under his hand, but abruptly stopped when he remembered the tomato.

He looked around for it and upon finding it again, assessed it for damage. Nope, it was still okay and in one piece. So without further ado, having not learnt anything about personal space, Naruto picked the fruit up and thrust it into the other boy's face - hitting him squarely in the nose.

And Sasuke had to admit that he didn't mind very much. It wasn't nearly as hard as Naruto's head had been and, well, it _was_ his favourite food. He settled for a quick 'dobe' and a half-hearted shove, before opening his mouth as wide as he possibly could.

The first bite, he thought, was always the best and Sasuke was quick to swallow it down in favour of taking another. But just as he was about to, he was cut off.

"Ne, Sasuke?"

The blonde watched as conflicted emotions passed over the Uchiha's face, before impatient eyes turned to glare at him. "What, dobe?"

"Can I keep you?"

For a minute, Sasuke merely looked at him, utterly thrown by the question. And then he was suspicious. Could he _keep_ him? Like what, a dog or something? A mental image of himself on a leash flitted through his mind and Sasuke frowned, deciding to ask a less complex question instead.

"Why?"

Naruto shrugged as if the answer was obvious. When the pale boy's eyebrows remained furrowed, he sighed.

"Weeell, 'Ruka-chan always says that you should keep the things that make you happy."

A slow nod of partial understanding. "Yeah, and?"

"That's why I always have ramen all the time. Because it makes me happy."

Was Naruto comparing him to food? Sasuke glanced down at the tomato in his hands. Yeah, he liked Naruto and all, but that didn't mean he thought the boy was a tomato. Was Naruto saying he was like a bunch of noodles? He raised an eyebrow, more at his own train of thought that anything.

Upon seeing his apparent confusion, Naruto tried explaining again. "Remember Kyuubi?"

Sasuke gave him an exasperated look. How could he forget it? An oversized, fluffy, rancid orange-coloured fox plushie that Naruto insisted was better than his toy snake Orochimaru. The amount of times they'd gotten into fights over it was somewhat ridiculous.

"Yeah, well, I keep Kyuubi 'cause Kyuubi makes me happy."

Ah. He understood. Sort of. "So, why do you want to keep_ me_?"

At this, Naruto gave the most breath-taking smile Sasuke had ever seen, and he wondered if his brain would remember this when he was as big as 'Tachi-niisan. His heart, on the other hand, he didn't even need to ask - it was already stuttering away, filing the image away so that it was kept somewhere safe and treasured.

"Because Sasuke makes me the happiest."

In that one moment, all the grace he'd ever had, if any, fled his body and allowed the building heat of embarrassment to flush his little face. He ducked his head down, letting Naruto's words sink in and abruptly realised his tomato was still in his hands, almost untouched. Unable to do anything else, he lifted the fruit to his face and took the tiniest of bites.

And maybe it was the pleasure he could feel singing in his veins, the fight to keep a grin from breaking out, or the absolute sincerity that radiated from azure eyes when they met his own obsidian ones, but Sasuke thought that this was possibly the sweetest tomato he'd ever had.

* * *

**Hey again everyone!**

**I have a few apologies to make: Firstly, sorry for taking so long to update! I honestly went through a bit of a writer's block - not to mention I have exams coming up in a few weeks, so... And secondly, this was such a long chapter! I mean, maybe not for you guys but for me? I usually find it extremely hard to write over 2 pages, so this is really something.**

**Cookie for your reviews? (Kidding, I can't bake.)  
**

**Next chapter will probably, if I'm honest, take just as much time - so don't expect anything too soon! **

**BUT DON'T ABANDON ME EITHER, OKAY?**

**Peace out,  
Madam Jekyll.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** As much as I'd like to, I don't own any of the Naruto characters. A sad truth.

**Sneak peak (I know, I should have put this at the end of chapter 2 but to be really honest, I didn't have a clue what chapter 3 was going to be about so how could I?): **Kakashi and Iruka are making more of an appearance here! So enjoy it because I love them. And before you think this is highly unrealistic, which it is by the way, not every male character in this story will be gay. So don't freak out, okay? Okay. Jonin are the senior school students (so years 10 and above) and the chunin are all the littlies (9 and under). In case that confuses you guys.

* * *

**Between Books And Funny Coloured Hair**

Somewhere before Sasuke's 9th birthday and just after his 14th, older brother Itachi Uchiha had conveniently hit puberty and entered a surprising stage of his adolescence. One that meant he now sported a bucket load of dark eye make-up, less of a tan (not that he had one in the first place) and an odd sort of hair style. Essentially, Itachi had gone goth.

And as the ever-admiring younger brother, Sasuke had decided to follow suit - trimming his hair into what Naruto had dubbed 'The Duck Butt Cut' and becoming even more antisocial than he already was. As for clothing, Sasuke's tastes went on to limit themselves even further and was now entirely a collection of whites, blues and blacks. No matter how much orange Naruto pushed at him.

Whilst this stage did mean that Itachi spoke a little less, it did not, for whatever reason, make him any less frightening. If anything, the little that he did say became all the more scathing, so much so that Naruto tried extremely hard not to get in his way because a mere 'Hello' from the eldest Uchiha would scare him right out of his wits. Sasuke, on the other hand, was not intimidating in the slightest. Simply because Naruto was pretty damn sure that even though the boy acted like he hated everything - Sasuke had a good heart, and that little something was enough for the blonde to stick around. But that didn't mean they always got along.

* * *

"Teme! I told you - ninja spies use code names and mine is 'The Bestest Most Awesome Hokage Ever'!" He hissed. The whiskered boy knew he was whining but it had taken him ages to come up with something so professional and he wanted all his hard work to stand for something.

Sasuke sighed and resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose like his father did when he was frustrated. They'd been through this way too many times and honestly? He was starting to feel like Naruto had the IQ of a turnip and the obstinacy of a brick wall. All push and no give. He leant his head back against the tree, watching the leaves rustling in the wind to placate himself a little, before the walkie talkie up to his mouth and sighing exasperatedly.

"And_ I_ already told_ you_, that's too long."

"But I use your code name!" Naruto bit back, trying to keep his voice down in case that creepy old librarian lady came over to shush him again. "Your code name is all sucky and _bleh_ but I still use it!"

"Hn." _Tough it. _

Now you see, not long after Itachi's radical personality change, Naruto had discovered that unlike the rest of the human population, Sasuke Uchiha had a language that was entirely his own and consisted solely of a few short syllables. The way those monosyllables were said (or rather, grunted), the tone, use of silence as well as his body language could convey a whole array of taunts and jabs without the effort of words.

At first, this made life a little tricky, considering Sasuke switched between the two languages without even pausing to think. But because Naruto was with the stoic boy almost every other day, you could say that by now, he was pretty fluent and could translate from 'Jackass' to English and back again quite easily. But even that, unfortunately, could not make him immune to the arguments they had and right now, Naruto kind of, sort of,_ really_ wanted to punch the raven.

"But mine is creative!" He grumbled, "Not like yours."

"Hn," came the retort. _I don't care._

Blue eyes flashed with irritation - for someone who prided himself on being oh-so-mature, Sasuke could be really childish sometimes. How could anyone dismiss his geniusness like that? Tch. But fine, if Sasuke wanted change...

"Then how about 'Naruto Uzumaki - Greatest Ninja Of All Time'?"

The answering silence gave away Sasuke's disapproval.

He tried again. "Uh, 'The Orange Epic Ramen Emperor'?"

"Hn." _No_.

"'Konoha's Shining Golden Star'?"

"Hn." _Yea- no. _

"What about 'Lord Uzumaki, The Legendar-?"

The sharp 'clack' of angry heels interrupted Naruto's train of thought and he quickly realised that he had two options: Either stay and be kicked out of the library by demonic dragon lady, or run and hide elsewhere. Fight or flee. And being the fearless warrior he was, Naruto chose the latter - hastily slipping underneath the neighbouring desk and pressing himself into the shadow of its back corners. It was a tight fit, considering this table was actually occupied, but somehow he managed. And when the confused, somewhat miffed librarian lady _finally_ walked away, Naruto allowed himself a small celebration. Victory! Now, to brag to Sasuke about it.

He reached a tanned hand out to grab the walkie talkie, fingers already itching to press the button the moment they landed on something solid. But before the blonde could bring it to his mouth, his brain suddenly registered the fact that, in his panicked escape he had actually abandoned the device and left it underneath his original table - and what his hand was currently resting on was warm, covered in material and most definitely _not_ what he was looking for.

Naruto could feel his limbs lock into place and he abruptly realised exactly who's table he had just crawled under.

At 14 years old and 165cm in height, Kakashi Hatake was pretty intimidating. The fact that he wore a crooked headband to cover his scarred left eye and a dark blue mask that obscured the lower half of his face only added to the rumours that always seemed to linger around him. Depending on who you asked, Kakashi was all sorts of things - a drug lord, an assassin, a registered sex offender, a mute, a thug... Everything _except _your average teenager.

Not surprisingly, Kakashi was also a bit of a loner.

Naruto, whilst he could be rather thick at times, was highly aware of this fact and thus became extremely suspicious upon finding out that every Saturday afternoon, at around 2 or 3 o'clock (depending on how late the silver-haired teen was), Kakashi would casually meet up at the library with Iruka.

_Iruka._ Innocent, lovely, big brother Iruka.

Hence, the spying. Or the 'close observation', as Sasuke liked to put it. Whatever. The blonde was nine years old and didn't particularly care what it was called. What he did care about, and fiercely too, was his brother.

Because Iruka was happy all day every day, and although he could rant like nobody's business when he was in a bad mood, Iruka was kind to everyone - regardless of whether they deserved it or not. He smiled with not just his mouth, but with his eyes as well, and for that most of the villagers adored him. If that smile vanished, Naruto was dead sure the sun would too. And so, a long time ago, the young Uzumaki had decided he would protect that. Everyone he knew had something worth protecting and this was Iruka's. Naruto didn't care if people thought he was weird. Let them think that. Better yet, let them see - let them see exactly what sort of shit went down when they dared to mess with the ones he loved. He'd take them all on, everyone and anyone.

Uh, that was, anyone _but_ Kakashi.

So when Naruto found himself staring into the one grey eye of the notorious young Hatake, the concept of breathing was suddenly beyond him. His body began to buzz, nerves tight with fear, and had Naruto not had a hearty lunch beforehand, he would have simply fainted away. Not that he would have minded, at this rate.

"What are you looking at down there, Kakashi-san?"

The eye curved into an upside down 'U' in response to Iruka's question. "Nothing, Iruka-chan, just another obstacle on the road of life."

Naruto gulped, still frozen with his hand on the older male's foot. He wasn't quite sure what Kakashi was talking about but if Iruka found out it was _him_ the gray-haired boy was staring at beneath the table... Things would definitely _not_ be pretty.

"You and your 'road of life' rubbish. And how many times have I told you not to call me Iruka-chan?" He scowled, wrinkling the scar on his nose - adding 'chan' to the end of his name made him sound like a girl. _  
_

"Can I call you Iruka-kun, then?"

"Just 'Iruka' is fine."

"But I like 'Iruka-kun'."

The warning growl that clearly said '_Don't even go there' _went ignored, as usual, because Kakashi was never one for obeying instructions. Instead, he straightened up in his chair with a look of mock seriousness on his face.

"And you're so cute."

And that was all it took. The eyes that had been closed in irritation now flashed open and presented the older teen with a scalding glare. Iruka could feel a throbbing headache coming on and he crossed his arms over his chest in what he hoped was a threatening gesture. "I. Am. NOT. Cute."

And Iruka was right. He wasn't cute. He was goddamn _beautiful_ when he was angry - when his brown eyes blazed with unrestrained emotion and his fists hung curled by his sides, a telltale blush staining his cheeks a pretty red. At these times, his lectures had the capacity to turn a senior school jonin into a snivelling pile of tears and apologies. Kakashi had witnessed it too, when Iruka had caught Pain bullying some of the younger chunins. He'd watched as Iruka marched up to the orange-haired teen, fiercely demanding an apology even though he was a good head shorter. Pain had threatened him and, upon discovering that Iruka did _not_ take nicely to foul language, tried to weasel his way of what was clearly going to be trouble. Eventually he'd quietened down, his head hanging low in shame, and when there came was a wet sniffle, Kakashi realised with a shock that Pain was crying. Pain, the ruthless head of Konoha's most infamous gang, who had more piercings than you could count, had been reduced to tears by someone who was almost 3 years his junior.

But then Iruka's eyes had softened and his arm came up to gently sooth the whimpering boy, promising that, so long as Pain never did it again, he was forgiven and things were okay now, really. And when the jonin had stopped his blubbering, he'd offered a small smile, a few more hushed words and miraculously, Pain was laughing again.

And just like that, Kakashi was captivated. Hook, line and sinker. It had taken a few weeks to work up the courage to say hi, and a few more to figure out how exactly he was meant to make friends with such a lively personality (and after much consideration, he'd settled on pretending to need a maths tutor) - but gradually, he'd gotten there and now, a few months down the track, Kakashi was going out of his way to drive Iruka just the tiniest bit insane. What was best about it all was that the younger boy was blissfully, _blissfully,_ unaware of it all. Unaware of the fact that Kakashi was in fact a child prodigy, a genius, and had mastered the formulas, the methods, everything, years ago. That Kakashi only did this to be in the same room as the feisty chunin without having to worry about what people would think about them. And that at night, when all was dark and quiet, Kakashi only had to think of the younger boy's smile, his choppy little pony tail, or the adorable scar that danced its way across his nose to feel warm inside.

Which would explain the impish grin Iruka received upon launching into his 'Concentrate when I'm teaching you Kakashi, or you'll never learn anything' lecture, even as the brunette shot him his most fearsome glare. His eyes slipped shut and he shook his head, a little puzzled and more than a little peeved at Kakashi's behaviour today. The boy would be the death of him, honestly. _Nonetheless_, he thought, sneaking an eye open to peek at the lazy teen, _he learns fast. I'll give him that._ And that was all he was willing to give because Iruka would never admit that the grey-eyed boy, with all his quirks and smartass remarks, was growing on him.

He scooted closer. "Whatever. Grab your pencil and sit up straight. I'm actually trying to get this into your head."

Kakashi mock saluted. "Sir, yes sir."

Iruka snorted, struggling to retain his smile. "Shut up Hatake."

There was an unexpected gasp and the table thumped a bit as Naruto came scrabbling out. "Ruka-chan you can't say that! That's mean!" He cried, arms failing.

Iruka blinked. What in _God's_ name had Naruto been doing underneath their table? And how long, exactly, had he been there? There were so many questions and so many things wrong with this situation that for a second, the adopted Uzumaki felt dizzy. But then brown eyes darkened with rage and Iruka slowly rose to his feet, hands planted firmly on the table. "Naruto."

The blonde, who had continued to jabber on about manners and pleasantries and other many things, stopped dead in his tracks. That tone of voice, the low timbre, the way his name had been sharply bit out... This could be bad.

He gulped. "Yes?"

"What," Iruka began menacingly, eyes aflame, "What are you doing here?"

"Uh, I'm... I mean, Sas-, I mean, me and Sasuke wanted to read? Y-yeah, that's right - read some books. For school." The last part came out more confidently and Naruto nodded his head in satisfaction. He'd had to think on his feet just then and for someone who didn't do much thinking at all, really, that excuse wasn't too shabby. It was plausible, in the least.

"So, where's Sasuke, then?"

"In the tree." Naruto replied.

There was silence. _In the tree?_ Apparently, coming up with that excuse beforehand had diminished the last of his brain's vigilance and, upon realising what he had said, Naruto slapped a hand over his mouth, eyes going wide with shock.

Totally. _Busted._

Iruka shot a glance at the window and sure enough, a sheepish looking Sasuke blinked back at him, raising a hand in a tentative wave. The spiky-haired brunette gave him a tight grin that promised him pain if he dared to come inside before turning his eyes back to his younger brother.

"Naruto?"

"U-um, ye-yes?"

"You have exactly three seconds to run."

* * *

Sasuke watched the chaos inside the library with mixed emotions. Firstly, there was some sort of disapproval. Because no, the upturned tables, the yelling, the chasing, the desperate pleas of calm by the poor librarian would not go down well within the Uchiha household. But then again, and Sasuke smirked as Naruto came charging by the window for the hundredth time in the last five minutes - he could easily say that it was all kind of amusing, considering _he_ wasn't the victim of Iruka's murderous wrath. There was a loud crash from inside and Sasuke winced. That had to have hurt. Idly, he wondered how much the Uzumakis would have to pay for damage, because-

"Yo."

And Sasuke would have damn well fallen out of the tree if it hadn't been for the fact that he had a good grip on a nearby branch (and that he was an Uchiha, obviously). Trying to calm his racing heart, the boy turned to his right and was mildly shocked to Kakashi Hatake crouched beside him, with one hand up in greeting and a condescending sort of smile on his face. "It's hell in there, isn't it?"

How did you get up here? Weren't you just in there a few seconds ago? How come I didn't hear you climbing? Sasuke ignored his mind's incessant questions and instead turned back to face the library window. "Hn," he stated calmy. _It is._

The leaves rustled overhead and Sasuke tilted his head up to blue, blue sky when Kakashi spoke again. "You can tell Naruto I'm not going to hurt Iruka."

Sasuke snorted, grimaced and then quickly tried to cover up his moment of un-Uchiha-like grace. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Because I like him."

The statement was blunt and Sasuke was almost floored by the blatant sincerity underlying the teen's words. _Kakashi liked Iruka? _

"... As in _like _like like?" He asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

There was a nod of confirmation.

Sasuke thought about it and then shrugged - it wasn't that hard to believe. Iruka was a nice guy and Kakashi was a weirdo. It was sort of logical that one would like the other. In a strange kind of way.

A warm breeze filtered through the tree top, lifting Kakashi's hair as he watched Iruka lecturing Naruto inside the library, having finally gotten a hold of the boy. He could feel the fondness in his eyes and there was so much of it that even if he understood what exactly he was he was feeling, he wouldn't have been able to stop it. The 14 year old leant back on his hands, letting his feet swing like a small child. There really was something about Iruka.

"What makes you so sure?"

It was completely random and out of the blue but Kakashi didn't so much as blink at the question. His one eye slid over to Sasuke, who fidgeted nervously under his gaze until he realised what he was doing and immediately stopped. Was there a blush he was detecting on the smaller boy's cheeks? Kakashi grinned. "Well, what do you mean?"

Sasuke's little eyebrows furrowed and he was suddenly less sure of what he was asking, unaware that Kakashi was merely toying with him. "I mean... how do you know if you like someone?"

"There are a lot of ways." He answered vaguely, snickering when Sasuke shot him a mean glare. He decided to let up a bit - the boy was young and wildly inexperienced, after all. "Would you like to hear one of them?"

Sasuke deliberately waited a moment before he nodded, trying to pull off the same laid back, non-committal attitude that seemed to roll off the person sitting beside him. Kakashi noticed and smothered a smile as he replied. "You try to spend all your time with them. And when you're not with them, you want to be." It sounded mushy, even to him, but that was truthful as he got when it came to feelings. "That's how I know, at least."

A few seconds of silence permeated the air as Sasuke carefully considered the information given. "That... makes sense, I guess." He said finally. "I still think you're weird, though."

Kakashi raised his eyebrows, the abrupt change in topic catching him by surprise. "Weird?"

Sasuke jumped off the branch. "Stupid too."

Offering the confused teenager a small smirk, Sasuke dusted off his shorts and began his trip to the library entrance.

Because honestly, who needed a tutor?

* * *

Naruto stumbled out of the library doors and carefully reached a hand around to feel the back of his head. Yeah, there was definitely a tender lump emerging and he quickly decided that for future reference, spying on Iruka was a bad _bad_ idea - especially when there were heavy books lying around. The shuffle of feet alerted him to a presence and not two seconds later, the youngest Uchiha stepped out of the shadows, an 'I-told-you-so' grin planted firmly on his face.

"Kakashi said he wouldn't do anything to Iruka. And other stuff about spending time with the people you like like like."

Naruto nodded, too tired and beaten to investigate any further. Plus, judging by Iruka's violent defence of the other boy, Kakashi was apparently a decent guy and the rumours, the suspicions, the legendary myths were literally just that - myths. Orange jacket-clad shoulders rose and fell in a shrug. If Iruka said so, then Naruto would trust his word and leave what was well alone. Turning to his best friend, Naruto clasp both hands behind his head and rocked back on his heels.

"So, do you wanna hang out again tomorrow?"

"...Hn." _Yes._

Naruto grinned, all teeth and happiness. "Awesome."

Sasuke smiled, shook his head and tuned out as the blonde began to chatter away - something about ramen flavoured ice cream and how he thought that he could be part fox because of the whiskers on his face.

_All of my time, only with you. _

* * *

**...Okay, so I lied about updating this sooner than last time but believe me, I tried to! I just sort of hit a wall and everything I was writing down was okay but not great - and I wanted this to be done right. So there was a lot of deleting, re-imagining, editing, fucking up and before I knew it, months had passed. I'm sorry - and I swear I won't ever do it again! **

**But, uh... Would it be too out of line to ask for reviews? Yes? No? I love you all? **

**I promise I've g****ot plenty more ideas, so stick with me, 'kay?**

**Peace out,**

**Madam Jekyll. **


	4. Chapter 3 and a half

**Author's Excuse:** I don't even know how to start this. I promised I'd update sooner. I didn't. I can't even say I was busy. Because I wasn't (well, sort of). But still. I'm sorry? Again? For the third time?

**Author's Note: **So, I've decided that whilst I like how the story is going, if I were to upload another lovey-dovey-honey-bumkins sort of chapter, it'll a tad bit too mushy for my liking. So this chapter is going to be, hopefully, more humour than anything else. But don't worry - there will definitely be more kawaii-they're-so-in-love-please-have-babies-already chapters in the near future. So don't stress. It's chapter 3 and half because I had already started working on Chapter 4 prior to this and then couldn't be bothered editing the title. Meh.

* * *

**Curiosity Made the Cat a Loser**

"If we get caught, you are _so_ dead."

The threat was said plainly enough but, accompanied by a rough shove in the back and a heated glare, the underlying seriousness wasn't lost. Naruto heaved a sigh. "I told you, teme, we ain't gonna get caught. Geesh."

But Sasuke had a bad feeling and wasn't about it let it go. "Why are we doing this, again?" He asked, watching as Naruto's head disappeared around a corner.

"Because we want to?"

"Because _you_ want to." Sasuke corrected.

The blonde rounded on his best friend, hands placed unhappily on his hips. "No, because _we_ want to." Blue eyes insisted they were absolutely right and when the weary Uchiha couldn't muster a reply, Naruto grinned and continued on his exploration. He didn't really know what he was looking for but seriously, with a house this big, there had to be _something_ interesting on the premises. Dozens of images grappled for his attention because for all he knew, even though he'd been to the Uchiha manor multiple times now, there was probably a dungeon somewhere around here filled to the brim with disobedient servants, all chained to the same moulding wall and whipped on a regular basis. Naruto shuddered - knowing Itachi's sadistic personality, that possibility didn't seem too far off.

"Are you even listening?"

Sasuke's terse shout snapped Naruto out of his daze and he jolted hard enough to go into labour. Taking a few seconds to recover, he made sure his heart was no longer stuttering like a scratched record and scowled. "_What_, teme?"

The raven-haired boy crossed his arms. "That's my parents' room. We're not allowed in there."

The words hung there, suspended in the air until Naruto's mind caught up with his mischief and a funny kind of fire lit his eyes. The kind of fire that had Sasuke apprehensive and annoyed all at once. "No. Whatever it is you're thinking, we're not doing it."

The smile that had been growing on Naruto's face immediately faltered. "But I haven't said anything yet!"

"I don't need to hear it to know it's stupid." Sasuke turned and headed for the staircase, aggravation growing as the blonde tugged desperately on the back of his shirt. "Your plans are always stupid."

"This one isn't! I swear! Come on teme, it'll be fuuun!" Naruto whined, digging his heels into the floorboards in an attempt to stop the sour raven from leaving. When this and a series of pleas proved unsuccessful, Naruto tightened his grip in the dark blue shirt and heaved his weight backwards, only to plunge bottom first on to the floor. He ignored the painful sensation that shot up his spine and instead slouched forward with his hands clenched, head hung pathetically in defeat. "You never listen to me."

Sasuke stopped, muffled a groan and sighed. Cast an eye back to the miserable blonde, before rolling his eyes and sighing again. There was a small 'thump' and then Sasuke was seated cross-legged in front of Naruto, head resting on one hand. "Fine then. What's your plan?"

Naruto glanced up, still grumpy and a little peeved. "Why do you want to know?"

Sasuke felt his right eye twitch. "Just because."

"You're gonna say it's stupid."

"No, I won't."

"...Promise?"

Sasuke had never really liked making promises and usually, he would have slyly danced around it. But those sky-blue eyes were suspicious and focussed entirely on his face and Sasuke knew, he just knew, there was no way out of this one. Promises... Ugh. "...Fine."

And that was all it took. Throwing caution to the wind, Naruto scooted closer until their knees were touching, a smile that was all teeth and excitement firmly planted on his face. He touched his hands to the ground and begun to draw out all the delicate details of his plan, feeling the exhilaration building in his bones. When he was done he leaned forward, nose almost touching the other boy's and asked, "So what do you think?"

"..."

"...?"

"I told you your plans are stupid!" Sasuke was on his feet in a matter of seconds and irritated all over again. He growled and batted at the tanned hands that were once again scrabbling for purchase on his clothes, halting his movements only to make sure Naruto didn't pull his shorts right off. Turning back, Sasuke prepared himself to snap something rude at the boy but stopped because dear _god_, Naruto was wearing that idiotic expression on his stupid-baka face again. The watery eyes, the turned down mouth, the pathetic snivelling - all of it was just frustratingly out of place on the Uzumaki's face. He was pretty sure Naruto had 'moronic joy' set as his default expression and, whilst that did piss him off (because, honestly, who was happy like that all the time?), seeing anything else irked Sasuke to no end.

He ground his teeth together, raised his right hand in the air and brought it sharply down on the back of Naruto's head, feeling more than relieved when the wailing stopped. "Cut it out already. We'll do it." Anything to stop that pretentious blubbering.

The smile that he received almost blinded him and Sasuke idly wondered how anyone could switch from one mood to another in the space of a breath. That had to be damaging for the brain. It interested him, vaguely, but Sasuke had given up trying to understand how the cogs of his best friend's mind worked a long time ago. Grabbing Naruto by the collar, Sasuke hauled him up and brushed the dust off his clothes. Once satisfied, he shoved his hands into the pockets of his shorts and raised a fine black eyebrow.

"Well then?"

* * *

White drawer, black drawer, white drawer, black drawer.

"Sasuke?"

"Hn?"

"If you were a woman, what colour drawer would you put your make-up in?"

Naruto looked up in time to see a flicker of 'what the fuck' cross Sasuke's face. "...What?"

"I said if you were a woman- "

"No I heard that, dobe!"

"But you- "

"Just open the white drawer."

Muttering a 'bastard' under his breath, Naruto did as he was told and upon finding the desired items, gingerly picked out a tube of god knows what. It was a glossy black all over with a small strip of pink in the middle and smelt an awful lot like shoe polish. Lipstick, apparently. Popping the top off, curious azure eyes peered inside and Naruto was somewhat startled to find it was a vibrant shade of red.

"Haven't you ever seen a tube of lipstick before?"

"Shut up, teme." It was a half-hearted insult more sung than spat, Naruto too absorbed in the little thing he had discovered. Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned away to lean against the door frame - he was losing braincells just looking at the dazed moron. He didn't even know why they were in here. It wasn't like his parents' had anything interesting to hide or secrets to keep. Sasuke let his eyes scour the room, trailing indifferently over the ivory table and cream white bed covers, the dark oriental wallpaper emblazoned with the Uchiha crest. Amongst thoughts of how much it suited his family and their untouchable reputation, Sasuke was dimly aware of his name being called, but brushed it aside. Personally, he preferred simplicity over something extravagant and hence, his bedroom was scarcely decorated at all. No picture frames, posters, flowers on the beside table. It was just hues of blue, and a touch of black and white. That was it and he liked it that way.

"-ke! Are you even looking?"

Sasuke gave a non-interested hum. Because that was exactly what he was. Not interested. He winced when Naruto continued yelling, eardrums positively vibrating with the force. It had been almost 8 years since they had met, forming the most unlikely of friendships, and a million and one hours spent together afterwards - but Sasuke didn't think he'd ever get use to how _loud_ the blonde was. At most he had learnt to tune the obnoxious boy out but even then, when that voice did penetrate his little bubble of peace, it shocked him down to his bones. It was surprising, really, that he could keep his cool and not openly spazz out like anyone else would. Then again, he _was_ an Uchiha and that was expected of him.

So the next time Naruto yelled out his name, Sasuke merely turned his head, offered a bored glance and let another insult roll off his tongue. The Uzumaki was being a baka again, those stupid sapphire eyes filled with such childish excitement, grinning widely like a fool. And that lipstick, god, it wasn't even on properl- Wait, _what? _

Sasuke felt his eyebrow twitch as he slowly spun around and came face to face with a mess of colour. For whatever bizarre reason he would never understand, Naruto had not only taken an interest to his mother's (expensive) make up, but apparently tried to apply it as well. Without much success. Taking a step back, Sasuke tried to take in the bright pink eyeshadowing framing amused blue eyes but when he was finally able to look away, the sight of lipstick-smeared cheeks reign his attention back in and the raven-haired boy was back to square one - train of thought derailed, confused and a little terrified.

"What," he began, the twitch in his eyebrow intensifying when he realised Naruto was holding back a smile, "Are you doing?"

Naruto ignored him and dashed over the the mirror on the wall. It was a little high for him so he stood on his toes, dismissing the snide comment about his short stature. Turning his head this way and that, Naruto decided that even though he was the manliest of boys, he didn't look half bad. "I'm kinda pretty, neh Sasuke?"

There was a muffled guffaw and Naruto glared at his best friend's chuckling reflection before going back to staring at himself. It surprised him, really, that whilst the lipstick was as bright as bright could be and he was as tanned as tanned could be living in Konoha, the colour still stood out dramatically. And it made him wonder what it'd look like on someone whose skin hadn't received so much sun. Like Gaara, his brain supplied, and he snickered at the mental image. The guy had the hair to match.

"What are you laughing at, dobe?"

"Nooothing."

Sasuke gave him a pointed look and for a moment, Naruto was intrigued at the contrast between the sleek black eyebrows and its pale canvas. Because everyone in the Uchiha family was paper-white and hey, Sasuke didn't like to go out a lot. He preferred to stay inside, where the room was always at a nice temperature and he didn't have to worry about the rain or the wind or the sun or the dogs or the cats or for god's sake the people and their annoying inabilities to just shut the hell up and be quiet.

And that was when Sasuke realised that Naruto was staring at him and had probably been staring at him for the past five minutes. He struggled not to squirm under the curious gaze but when Naruto showed absolutely no signs of stopping, he snapped. "_What_?"

Naruto took a few long strides closer and leaned in closer than Sasuke was comfortable with. There were a few more seconds of awkward silence and then, "Can I put some on you?"

Sasuke spluttered an _are you serious? _and panicked when he received a grave nod in return. "But_ w__hy_?"

"Because I want to see." Said Naruto, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You're paler than I am."

Hands planted themselves firmly on Naruto's orange jacket and kept him at arm's length. "So?"

"So?" Naruto started, almost shocked at the question. "It'll look really different on you and-"

"No!"

"-I want to see what it looks like!"

"No!"

"Come on, teme!" Naruto whined, whiskers scrunching up. "Just once!"

"NO."

"Please?!"

"No!" Sasuke was getting desperate now. Because it wasn't really that big of a deal, putting lipstick on, but putting it on in front of Naruto? No. Hell no. Uchihas did not place themselves in embarrassing situations. That was definitely not happening on his watch. "I don't want to."

"But why nooot?" Naruto's hand tugged at the other boy's shirt.

"Because- " And for the life of him, Sasuke couldn't think fast enough when Naruto had those blue eyes trained expectantly on him. "Because- uh- because-" Because? "Because lipstick is for girls!" Yeah, that'd do.

Naruto stopped his tugging and his groaning and his pleading for a few seconds to think about it. He couldn't deny that makeup wasn't for girls, because it was. And Sasuke was, he'd admit, a little more grown up than himself so it was sort of understandable that he wouldn't want to play with the same things. But nonetheless, the image of Sasuke wearing such a contrasting colour had taken him by the collar and refused to let go. Plus, he had put the damn thing on and he hadn't feel any less manly, now had he? "Who cares! Pleeease?"

Sasuke vigorously shook his head. "No. End of story."

Naruto fisted his hands in Sasuke's shirt and gave the boy a firm shake, sending midnight hair flying. "But temeee!" He complained as he threw his head back in exasperation. "I did it!"

"So?" Sasuke retorted, trying to disentangle himself from Naruto's grip, "It's stupid."

Naruto opened his mouth to say something, snapped it shut when a thought hit him and gaped at the bewildered Sasuke a few seconds later. He let go of the shirt. "Are you," Naruto gasped, a smile working its way onto his face as Sasuke promptly began to stalk away, "Are you chicken?" _  
_

Sasuke stopped in his tracks, whipped his head around and immediately fired back that no, he wasn't _chicken_, he just didn't want to. Naruto narrowed his eyes and studied the indignant expression on the other wore, before his eyes caught that funny understanding light and he collapsed in a fit of laughter. "You are!"_  
_

"I am not!"

The fox-faced boy lay on the floor, a giggling mass of limbs. "Sasuke's scared of lipstick!" He taunted, ducking when Sasuke stormed back over and sent a ferocious punch his way. "Scaredy cat! Scaredy cat!"

Sasuke felt his teeth clack together as the competitive nature that came in his genes flared up - the need to protect his honour, his dignity, his family name. Uchihas were competitive in every sense of the word and fearless before anything. Most importantly, they _never_ backed down. Especially not to bumbling, ramen-loving blondes.

"Fine!" He cried, in a voice that was an octave higher than normal and all too defensive, "I'll put on the stupid lipstick! God, you're so annoying."

Naruto peeked open an eye and peered up at the boy, pleasant surprise evident on his face. He mouthed a _really?_ and before Sasuke could take back the words he was already starting to regret, Naruto was up and over to him with the lipstick in hand. Tanned digits grasped his chin and as uncomfortable as it was, Sasuke remained still, reluctantly opening his mouth when instructed. A few mess ups, clean ups and embarrassing minutes later, Naruto was nodding and congratulating himself - applying lipstick was _so_ much easier when he could actually see where he was going and thus Sasuke's cheeks had remained untainted, the vibrant colour confined to the contours of his lips.

Sasuke pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. This was ridiculous. Forget pride, he looked like an idiot and he knew it. Honestly. His shoulders jerked forward as Naruto forcefully pushed him to the mirror, all the while happily chattering to himself _he'd done a good job, hadn't he? _and _Teme, you look kinda cool. Kinda weird, but kinda cool. At the same time. _

"See?" Naruto gave him a cheesy grin, eyes curving up into little sideways crescents. "You do look kinda cool."

And Sasuke had to admit (internally, of course) as the two stared at the red on his face, the sight did make him curious and he turned his head left, then right, then left again just as Naruto had done before him, to admire the view. "Baka." He stated, eyes still locked on his own mouth. "I- "

"Wow, outoto, I never would have thought you'd be into this sort of thing."

_No no no no no no, NO. This could NOT be happening. _

For a moment there, the room spun and colours blurred into one as Sasuke whipped around to face the drawling voice. And he should have known, should have guessed, that out of all the people who could have possibly caught him out doing such an act, Fate would be cruel and choose his sixteen year old brother.

Black eyes gleamed with evil intentions, a promise of mockery and blackmail for the rest of Sasuke's life as Itachi stood from his position leaning on the door frame and swept out of the room, dark chuckles following him down the hallway. And before Sasuke could crumple into a ball and just die right then and there this was so embarrassing oh-my-god, Itachi popped his head back in.

"By the way, outoto, red is so not your colour."


End file.
